Page 87 of Land of Monsters

“I’m sorry, but is that a…buttplugon her head?” I sputtered.

“Yes.” Ash scoffed.

“No.” Opie glared at Ash. “It’s called afascinatorfastener,” he corrected. “A sophisticated headpiece. She likes how she looks in them.”

“And I like howshelooks when one’s in her.” Ash winked at me, my cheeks blushing. Lacing his hand in mine, we strolled out of the door. The downstairs was quiet, and we slipped out into the streets, heading toward the square.

Keeping deep in my hood, my hand in his, I couldn’t stop the smile plastered on my face. I was giddy. Happy. Like, deliriously happy.

It should’ve been enough to warn me not to ignore the prickling feeling I sensed earlier. But I had been blinded by Ash, too absorbed in our little bubble to understand what was coming.

That was always when everything came crashing down.

Chapter 17

Raven

?

“Here.” Ash plopped a bag of warmbulzin my hand. The scent of ham and cheese grilled inside the polenta had my dweller clawing at the surface, desperate for protein. “Eat. I can hear your stomach from here.” He winked.

While Ash waited for the rest of our order, I attacked the food, scarfing down several at a time. My tongue barely tasted the delicious flavors before I shoved another one in my mouth, forgoing all etiquette and manners.

Mid-bite, a hum crawled up the back of my neck, tugging in my chest, slowing my chewing as my attention went to the large square. I knew the sensation better than my own heartbeat, but my brain did not want to accept it.

No. It can’t be.

Swallowing, I struggled to get the polenta down my throat, my pulse rising in my ears, my gaze darting around, scanning every face.

He can’t be here.

“What’s wrong?” Ash stood in front of me, holding two coffees, his attention darting out, trying to find what was upsetting me.

“Nothing.” I turned back to him, putting a smile on my face.

“You know that won’t work on me,” he replied. “You can lie to everyone else, but not me. I feel you, little beak.”

“It’s just—”

Raven?

It was barely a whisper in my mind, but it sounded like a shout, whipping my head to the side. Everything blurred around me except the lone figure far across the square, which was sharp, the black of his cloak vivid against the snowy ground.

The bag ofbulzslipped from my fingers, dropping onto the cobbled ground, a harsh inhale piercing the back of my throat.

“What?” Ash went into defense mode. “What is it?”

The hooded form lifted his head, his identical eyes landing on mine across the distance, locating each other as if we were magnets.

He was here. He found me.

My twin.

“Rook…” I whispered his name, knowing he would hear me when no others could. The familiarity of him, the feeling of being whole, made my eyes tear up.

Rook and I were close, but we never had that deep twin thing—probably because I was messed up—though we still shared more than I did with anyone else. In proximity to each other, he was the only one I could sort of link to, unlike the rest of the dark dwellers, who could all communicate with each other through a network without talking out loud.

I didn’t have to hear or feel him to sense his anger, his confusion… his hurt. But none of it mattered in the moment. My heart let out a small cry and I took off running toward Rook.

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